Sweet Sorrow
by verseseven
Summary: "I never saw true beauty till this night." Nessie/Jake AU
1. Chapter 1

**Sweet Sorrow** - "I never saw true beauty till this night." Nessie/Jake AU

When Bella discovered she was pregnant, she and Edward stayed on Isle Esme and the family joined them there to help. They never returned to Forks and there was never a confrontation with the Volturi.

This story is pretty simple and straight forward, short and to the point Thanks for reading!

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It wasn't easy being in a family with four sets of perfectly matched lovers.

My grandparents, aunts and uncles, and my parents were all partnered with their soul mates. We had a happy home and were an extremely tight knit family. As I was growing up, it made me feel safe to live in such peace and harmony. But, after I matured and my family began treating me more and more like an adult, I began to wish for my own partner. More than once I had interrupted intimate moments and while it was embarrassing, it made my heart ache, too. Would I ever find someone to love and who would love me back?

My life was complicated. I couldn't just go out and meet someone. I was a half-human, half-vampire, in a family of vampires. I couldn't trust our family secret with a human and the vampires we knew didn't observe our "vegetarian" diet, so that definitely wouldn't work. I had a friendship with Nahuel, a hybrid like me who lived in South America, but it wasn't romantic.

My father and I were very close. Despite the fact that he had mind reading capabilities, I still talked to him about everything. He had been the odd man out, too, for many years, until he met Mom, so I felt like he understood what I was feeling. Dad encouraged me to learn things, travel, be productive. He never promised that I would meet my mate, but he didn't want me to give up hope, either. It would happen when it would happen.

Knowing I was starting to feel sensitive about a lack of a partner, my family made an effort to not rub my face in their bliss. Not that they ever did before, but I noticed a concerted effort to make me feel included. Instead of holding hands with Uncle Jasper, Aunt Alice would link arms with mine if we were walking somewhere. There were many daddy-daughter dates to the symphony and Mom and I would go on road trips driving our motorcycles. At the movies I would sit between Aunt Rosalie and Uncle Emmett, which I knew meant they loved me a lot because they were usually inseparable like my parents.

One day Aunt Alice announced that we were having a Girls Only weekend in Las Vegas.

"Vegas is no place for a child," Dad remarked.

I refrained from rolling my eyes. I knew I would always he his "little girl," but I had been fully mature for over a decade. Physically, I looked the same age as my parents, if not older, and had for quite awhile.

"You're too protective, Edward," Aunt Rosalie responded, as she continued braiding my hair.

Mom laughed. "Really, Rose? Remember Europe?"

Everyone joined Mom's laughter, as Aunt Rosalie frowned. "That was different, Ness was much younger."

Aunt Rosalie was just as protective of me, if not more sometimes, as my parents. On our first trip to Europe, she wouldn't let any stranger talk to me and had Uncle Emmett act like my personal bodyguard.

"When are we going?" I asked.

"Tomorrow!" Aunt Alice exclaimed.


	2. Chapter 2

Traveling from our current home in Baffin Island, Canada to Las Vegas on the family's private jet, we were greeted by the lights of the Strip and the bustling energy of people ready to have a good time. Mom, Grandma, and I had never been to Las Vegas before, but Aunt Alice and Aunt Rosalie had several times.

A limousine took us to our hotel, where we were ushered by several employees to the Penthouse Suite. Usually the family didn't flaunt our wealth, but there were occasions when we enjoyed the best of the best. We didn't have to work so hard to blend in the crowd in Las Vegas, since a walk through the hotel lobby told us there were all types of people in the city and many of them loved to bring attention to themselves. Grandma was a little flustered at the short skirts and ads for striptease shows.

Aunt Rosalie and Aunt Alice were eager to shop, while Mom and Grandma insisted they take me to dinner. Afterwards, I wanted to explore the Strip and as we left the restaurant I explained I was going for a walk.

"Alone?" Grandma asked, glancing at me and then around at the crowds in the casino.

I kissed her on the cheek. "I'll be fine!"

"You have your cell phone, right?" Mom asked nervously.

I nodded and waved goodbye as I started walking away. "Love you!"

Our family had traveled practically everywhere, but I still found Las Vegas fascinating. The lights, crowds and energy were exciting. I wandered in and out of casinos, people watching.

In one hotel I wandered into, there was a long, long line of people outside of a room with loud music. Curious, I walked closer, and a large man pulled back a velvet rope, and waved his hand to usher me inside, bypassing the line of people waiting to enter. Inwardly I shrugged, wondering why I didn't have to wait like the rest of the people, and then I realized it was a nightclub. I had been to a few in Europe, but always with my protective vampire family by my side. It was kind of nice to be by myself for once, although I felt a little nervous.

I got lost in the music and enjoyed dancing, trying to ignore the different men who attempted to approach me.

I glanced towards the bar, and there were no clocks, but my eyes wondered to a tall man sitting by himself. He turned and our eyes locked for a brief moment. I immediately blushed and turned around. A human made me blush? That was a first.

I felt someone hovering, and as I turned around to politely decline a dance invitation, I looked up and saw the man from the bar. He towered over me and was looking at me with a furious intensity. It wasn't anger, though…it was passion.

He put his hands on my waist and I put my arms around his neck and before I realized it I was experiencing my very first kiss. It was magical and unexpected. And very unlike me to be this uninhibited. Being a Cullen meant always being in _control_ and at that moment, I felt very out of control, but in a very good way.

Without saying a word, this man took my hand in his and led me out of the club. We approached a bank of elevators and I followed him. He was a stranger, but somehow I intuitively trusted him. I felt safe. Once we arrived at the door to his hotel room, he looked at me as if to ask, "Is this okay?" before opening the door. I smiled and squeezed his hand. For a moment I was tempted to show him my thoughts, using my gift, but I didn't want to freak him it out. It wasn't the right time to _explain things_.

The hotel room was modest, not a suite, and there was a king sized bed and a Jacuzzi facing a wall of windows. The man wrapped his arms around me and I snuggled closer to him, inhaling his scent and feeling complete. We hadn't even spoken a word to one another, but I was already wondering – where had this man been all my life?

As ridiculous as it sounded, I was melting in his arms. He was very warm and being so close to him was making me warm…..spiritually, emotionally, physically. I felt alive for the first time.

He kissed me as if he was a thirsty man and I was water in a desert. I surrendered and he consumed me.

Our lovemaking was passionate, but he was so, so gentle.


End file.
